Sunday's pelagic trip cancelled due to weather

This Sunday's pelagic (ocean) photography trip had to be cancelled due to bad weather. Our skipper made the call, and I heartily agree. With a forecast of winds of 20-30 knots, rain, and a 3m swell, an ocean trip in the 48-foot boat would not be fun!

Unfortunately this is always a risk with these one-day boat trips. Our next scheduled pelagic trip is on the 15th of August, when we'll try again.

Some of the photographers who'd booked for this Sunday's trip have rebooked on the August trip (the others got refunds). There are still a few free places on the August trip, so have a think about joining us on the adventure!

By the way, this blog entry is actually a copy of a news item on the LuminOdyssey.com site (which is chiefly for the larger photography teaching expeditions I'm involved in). If you haven't checked it out, have a look. And keep an eye on it: we've got several exciting trips for 2011 to be announced in the near future!

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May/June news

As usual it's going to be a busy couple of months. Presentations at several camera clubs, a photo workshop at sea, an outback photo safari, and PMA to boot!

Aurora from a moving ship

EOS 5DmkII, ISO 25,600, f/2, 1s (A2_025893)

This Wednesday night I'll be at Knox Photographic Society in Boronia presenting a slideshow of my Arctic photography from last November/December in Norway. Incidentally, I've recently re-processed many of these photos using Adobe's Lightroom 3, and it's noticeably improved many of the high-ISO images! On Thursday I'll be giving an abbreviated version of this presentation at Parklands Photo Club in Coburg.

On the last weekend of May we'll be out on the Southern Ocean photographing birds and marine mammals. We still have some free spots on the boat (it's an all-day trip on the Sunday from Portland) so if you're interested, please sign up now!

Then in early June I'll be at the Maroondah Photographic Society in Ringwood on the 2nd, after which the PMA exhibition hits Melbourne. As well as the trade show, there are some associated events such as the judging of the Australian Professional Photography Awards (the AIPP APPAs).

After PMA I'll be heading outback to Lake Eyre and the Painted Desert in South Australia with my friend Pele. 4WD travel and camping in the remote outback is not a simple undertaking, so there's a flurry of activity at the moment including getting the vehicle serviced before the trek of several thousand kilometres! As well as our usual workhorse cameras, I'll have a special new camera I'll be giving a good workout on this trip, and we've timed it to coincide with the new moon in the hope of some interesting star trail work. Hmmmm.... fresh outback photos!

After all that, on June 23rd I'll be presenting a seminar on high dynamic range (HDR) photography at the Diamond Valley Photographic Society in Greensborough.

Whew!

None of those camera club events cost anything to attend, so if you'll be in the areas you're most welcome to attend and say "Hi!".

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Whales, seals, albatrosses and other pelagic birds

On the last weekend of May I'm heading out from Portland on a boat in search of these animals, and taking a few fellow photographers with me.

There are still some vacant spots on the boat, so if you're interested in photographing wildlife, take a look and consider joining us!

Of course, I'll be offering instruction and assistance, not just taking you along for the ride.

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